LIFE BACK on the RANCH---WAY BACK
Have you ever been asked where you are originally from and what it was like growing up there? When someone asks me, before attempting to give an intelligible answer I ask if they’ve ever spent time in the very rural midwestern United States. If they’re a typical suburbanite who hasn’t, I attempt to provide them a descriptive explanation. The Setting My ancestors settled on our family ranch in the 1860s. Their first home was a hand-hewn log cabin. Today, the cabin is preserved and on display by the State Historical Society. The ranch was located miles from any appreciable civilization. Nearly a square mile in size, it was nestled along a mile of timberland and river. It abounded with all manner of wildlife: deer, foxes, turkeys, squirrels, skunks, many subterranean animals, and beavers that constantly attempted to dam up the river. Starting when I was six, the river and adjoining timberland became my perpetual playground. Althou...